Spokesperson for Smoke-Free Law to Speak to Chamber

The Union Area Chamber of Commerce will host the first of periodic speaking lunches with Joette Reidy, who helped spearhead a smoke-free law in Washington.

Reidy is the spokesperson for Breathe Easy Washington, a coalition that worked to educate the community on the dangers of secondhand smoke and advocating for the need for smoke-free workplaces.

The event will be held on Thursday, May 30, at Hagie’s at noon. The cost to attend is $8 for Chamber members and $15 for non-Chamber members.

Chamber Executive Director Tammy Stowe said Reidy will talk about her experiences going through steps to help draft a smoking law in Washington and why she believes it is an important health issue for the community.

The efforts of Reidy, and others with Breathe Easy Washington led to a Washington city ordinance that prohibits smoking in restaurants, bars, businesses, workplaces and other public places.

In addition to public places, including private clubs, the act also prohibits smoking outdoors near bleachers and grandstands and around playgrounds.

The law does not prohibit smoking outside or in private residences unless they are used as a childcare, adult daycare or health care facility.

Since the law was passed, the council has made some changes, including allowing smoking, for demonstration purposes only, in a designated area of the Missouri Meerschaum Corn Cob Pipe factory.

The council also amended the distance that smokers must stay back from the main entrance and ventilation facilities of a building from 20 to 10 feet.